The Con
The rules of the con easily apply to the world in which we live. All sorts of people have an interest in controlling, using and misleading us in order to profit (in various ways) from our mistakes and misunderstanding of the world. The best methods to achieve this, however, are those which already exist in our heads, our latent tendencies to act in particular ways in particular situations which can be anticipated by sufficiently amoral individuals for their own purposes.
Applying the rules However, knowing the rules also allows one to use them on themselves, to “pull the wool over their own eyes” to better understand how others do it.
The Quotes
The greatest enemy will hide in the last place you would ever look. - Julius Caesar, 75 BC
In the mind itself, that is the last place most people would look. You are your own greatest enemy. You know your own weaknesses and how to manipulate yourself better than anyone, and if one particular drive (such as pride) wants something in particular, then it knows the buttons to push to get them. The only way to get smarter is by playing a smarter opponent. - Fundamentals of Chess, 1885Unless you master your own mind, you have reached the limits of your potential. You can only go so far without addressing the inherent flaws that exist in your psyche. To get better, you need to confront your own failings and psychological frailties.
First rule of business, protect your investment. - Etiquette of the Banker, 1775
What is your investment? You. Your autonomy. Your ability to reason, analyze and outthink others. Alternatively, your beliefs are “your” investment. Your beliefs will be used to manipulate you, because you will always act to protect them.
There is no avoiding war; it can only be postponed to the advantage of your enemy. --Niccolo Machiavelli, 1502
The more you attempt to put off the struggle with your ego and pride, the more you avoid the painful process of sorting your head out and breaking the mental chains that have built up, the more entrenched they will become, and the more natural they will feel, until you are unable to distinguish between your ego/pride and yourself.
Other rules
“From now on, I am bending all the rules, because desperate men do desperate deeds.”
Jake is only willing to bend the rules once he is threatened with death, once he is desperate. He is not willing to do what is necessary at any time before then.“The more control the victim thinks he has, the less control he actually has.” The seeds of every person’s destruction are sown by them. In an environment they think they control, they let their guard down; they act without suspicion, they become gullible and easy. Society as a whole gives people enough rope, in the form of freedom, to hang themselves.
“The opponent simply distracts their victim by getting them consumed with their own consumption.” The basis of the con is appealing to people’s greed. In that sense, a con game appeals to the victim’s own desire for consumption. However, this is also a not very subtle reminder of consumer society, where the aim is getting the victi-er, customer, preoccupied with consumption and with varying brands of almost indistinguishable products. It also indirectly relates back to ego gratification and pride, in that we often identify with the products we buy, and define ourselves by these possessions and what they signify.
“The bigger the trick and the older the trick, the easier it is to pull, because -- 1. They think it can't be that old, 2. They think it can't be that big.” There is no bigger and older trick in the world than organised religion and the curious pride that being one of the “saved” engenders. Religion is the oldest con game both in the conventional sense and in the sense of being a framework whereby we are psychologically manipulated and controlled, often without realising it.
“When the opponent is challenged or questioned, it means the victim's investment and thus his intelligence is questioned, no one can accept that.” Doubt is the great enemy of pride and ego. Doubting what you know and your own skills kills the ego very effectively, but is so very hard to do, since few people can really do it properly, can really accept such self-interrogation of their value.“Embrace the pain and you will win this game.” Ego loss and the swallowing of pride are painful. It sets you against yourself, makes you unstable and question your every action. However, the only way to put a leash on your ego and self-destructive tendencies is to go through this painful process.
“If you change the rules on what controls you, you will change the rules on what you can control.” Putting a leash on the ego opens up new opportunities, new possibilities. You won’t be motivated by anger and minor slights, nor will mental weaknesses like paranoia and anxiety have such a hold on you. You are either an opponent or a victim. By refusing to be controlled, you change status from the former to the latter.
“The more power you think you have in Gold's world, the less power you have in the real world.” The most powerful are invariably tools of even more powerful people, or to their own innate drives. Macha, for example, ran many illegal games in town, but he was still nothing, a gnat, compared to Mr Gold. Power in Mr Gold’s world derives from what he is willing to give you, to allow you to have. And there is always a price attached with such power. In the real world, the only power you truly have is that which you derive from your own skills and innate cunning, which Gold cannot give or take away.
“Use your perceived enemy to destroy your real enemy.” “Enemies” are useful, in that truly dangerous ones brook no mistakes and will destroy you if you slip up. Even so, they are not as dangerous as the enemy inside your own head. Perceived enemies keep you sharp, in that allowing ego or pride to enter the equation when going up against them is signing your own death warrant. You therefore use your perceived enemy to keep your pride and ego in check. In Jake’s case, apologizing to Macha is the ultimate act of liberation, as it involves absolutely no pride or ego whatsoever. After he has killed his ego, fear has no hold on him, even when Macha brandishes a gun and threatens to kill him.
Found it odd the first time through, like huh? Did I miss a scene? I didn't get up and go to the bathroom.. and started going over them and realized the issue with the time line. 
